Yeah but would Elizabeth approve of it? The Woodville marriage caused a whole heap of problems and Elizabeth mightn't want that to happen. If things go otl the only way Henry can get a divorce is splitting with the Church which Elizabeth may not approve of. She might also see raising Thomas to an Earl as an artificial way of justifying the match.
What if Queen Elizabeth of York lived?
- Thread starter RedKing
- Start date
As everyone in Medieval Europe should know, following your choice isn't exactly the smartest movrt ever. Liz lived through the WotR and saw the shitstorm her parents' marriage caused, would she really want her son marrying an Englishwoman with an inappropriate pedigree (and yes I know she's a Duke's granddaughter, said duke is also local) for a king, the same way her father did? As they say, history repeats itself and the signs are all there. I think Liz would try to prevent that if she can do it.
But she can not prevent it. If Henry had decided to annul his wedding because he believed was cursed and has decided to marry Anne Boleyn she can only support Henry or not.
She would have more influence earlier, either in preventing Henry from marrying Catherine instead of Eleanor OR freeing Anne Boleyn from the unwanted attentions of her son
Have to say i am with Isabella - If Henry VII lives on until say 1511/12 then Henry is almost certainly going to marry Eleanor of Austria instead of her aunt.
Like Isabella it's a better match on paper for Henry, its equally prestigious dynastically (which had been one of the original reasons for marrying Arthur to Catherine), and importantly the ages were better and Maximilian was very keen on the idea. Its more than likely that they could be formally married by proxy in 1510 with an agreement Eleanor doesn't come to England until her 14th birthday in November 1512 and Catherine of Aragon is sent home to Spain as the Princess Dowager of Wales and her father marries her off somewhere else.
As to Elizabeth and Anne Boleyn if Henry does marry Catherine of Aragon and things follow as in OTL - well in my view it is highly unlikely she's going to live that long (she'd be sixty in 1526 and would therefore be older than either of her parents and siblings at their death) - if by chance she does then Anne Boleyn is the niece of her sister's widower but its debatable if the Howard connection would appeal that much given they hold the title stolen from her younger brother and are the descendants of the man who loyally supported her uncle's usurpation and herself being declared illegitimate - but that's anyone's guess I suppose.
Like Isabella it's a better match on paper for Henry, its equally prestigious dynastically (which had been one of the original reasons for marrying Arthur to Catherine), and importantly the ages were better and Maximilian was very keen on the idea. Its more than likely that they could be formally married by proxy in 1510 with an agreement Eleanor doesn't come to England until her 14th birthday in November 1512 and Catherine of Aragon is sent home to Spain as the Princess Dowager of Wales and her father marries her off somewhere else.
As to Elizabeth and Anne Boleyn if Henry does marry Catherine of Aragon and things follow as in OTL - well in my view it is highly unlikely she's going to live that long (she'd be sixty in 1526 and would therefore be older than either of her parents and siblings at their death) - if by chance she does then Anne Boleyn is the niece of her sister's widower but its debatable if the Howard connection would appeal that much given they hold the title stolen from her younger brother and are the descendants of the man who loyally supported her uncle's usurpation and herself being declared illegitimate - but that's anyone's guess I suppose.
Not true about the politics bit- it's well know that Elizabeth and her mother-in-law basically bombarded Henry VII with pleading and begging to not marry Margaret off in 1502 as she was too young (and Margaret Beaufort feared her granddaughter suffering the same fate as she did by having a child too young, so Henry delayed it to 1503 instead) and that, after a bishop died (I think in 1499 or 1500) and Margaret Beaufort went to Henry to get him to appoint her chosen successor, Elizabeth had already beaten her too it and Henry had chosen his wife's choice. If she so desired, Elizabeth could put her foot down and win the argument; she was just smarter at picking her fights - if she didn't need to pick the fight, she wouldn't.
As for the divorce, yeah, she'd fall in line with her son. She's seen the shitstorm that came from no male heirs and would not want it again.
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